Going Home
by Purple Satin
Summary: One shot. Kate has left her husband and home to pursue LocSat. Post Season 8. Time: post 8.04 or a little later. She misses her home, misses him, but can she swallow her pride and go back? Will he take her back?


Going Home Dedicated to

OftenBob Twitter. com

One shot. Based on a couple of prompts from the Castle Fanfic Prompt Page. The first prompt is from Anonymous: Can we prompt fic that isn't C/B centric? Because I think L.T. deserves some love after going down in 8.01. Maybe other characters visiting him while he's recuperating.

I was intrigued with this prompt and thought about how little attention we give the characters behind the scenes and they deserve love, too. Not entirely LT centic and lots of fluff. I don't know if this will meet the Anon's criteria, but I hope it works.

Dedication: To OftenBob twitter. com with gratitude. I hope he gets this.

The second part is from an Anon from the Castle Fanfic Prompt page. Lanie, "Did you just throw up on my dead body? Kate: "Nope" Lanie "Really? Cause I just saw vomit coming out of your mouth.

Kate was so damn tired. Tired of running and hiding, keeping secrets from her husband, secrets that they had vowed never to keep again. Eventually, secrets imploded having devastating effects on relationships. She only hoped that this would not be the one thing that destroyed them. The longer this went on, well, the odds were not in her favor. She hated doing this. Hated hurting him and leaving him had ripped her heart out.

She missed her home, her family, and above all else, she missed Castle. SRO's, empty warehouses, even her office at the 12th were a far cry from her home, but this was something she had to do, to keep them all safe, no matter the costs.

"Good Morning, L.T." she said, pulling blue latex gloves from her pocket and pulling them on with a snap. "And if you salute me, I will take my gun and shoot you", she said, slapping L.T. on the shoulder.

The smile he gave her was contagious. "Then I'll just say Good Morning, Captain, my Captain."

Smiling back up at him, she said, "L.T., you and I have known each other and have been friends far too long to stand on formalities. So, what do we have?"

"Stabbing victim and I gotta tell you, Kate, this one is pretty gruesome. Castle would have a heyday with this one. Definitely, material for one of his books."

At the mention of his name, a lump formed in her throat that she couldn't swallow down and tears pricked her eyes and rolled, unchecked down her cheeks.

"Aww, Kate. What in the hell is going on between you two? You're perfect for each other."

"I w-w-ish, I- could tell you, L.T., but I- can't.", Kate sobbed.

"Do you still love Castle?"

"I've n-n-ever, stopped. I l-l-ove him more than life itself."

"Then why, Kate?"

"I wish I could t-tell you, L.T., b-but I can't. If I tell anyone, it would put all your lives in danger. T-th-at's why I have to do this." Kate sobbed, wiping at her eyes.

"We're a tough bunch, Kate. Together, we can figure this out."

Now, L.T. sounded just like Castle. She knew he meant well, but he had no idea what was at stake here, no idea who they were up against, and quite frankly, at this point, neither did she.

"I'm sorry, L.T. I just can't.."

"Okay. We'll table it for now, but you can trust us, Kate."

"I know, and I do trust you, it's just…"

"If you trust us, you need to prove it and tell us what is going on."

It was true. L.T. Tolliver, a man of few words with a heart of gold always had their backs and he had proven it over and over again countless times.

L.T. was a large, tall man, easy going in nature, but formidable if you were on the wrong side of the law. A force to be reckoned with in his own right.

She started to protest, but a wave of nausea and a sense of vertigo had her grasping for L.T.'s hand lest she fall flat on her face.

Alarmed, L.T. asked, "Kate, are you okay?"

"Yeah. I got weak and dizzy there for a moment, that's all."

"Yeah. R-I-G-H-T. I'm going to call Castle."

"No! L.T., don't. Please, don't. I'm fine, really. I'm just overly tired. I'll be fine, I promise."

"You need to go home, Kate. You need to go home now."

"No. I need to go meet that dead body over there, and as your Captain, I am ordering you to break protocol and escort me to that crime scene."

"Okay. For now, but just for now is all I'm promising, Kate. You really need to rethink whatever this is and go home." L.T. said, shaking his head.

The dizziness that she had experienced a few moments ago, was gone She still felt weak and shaky, but at least, she no longer felt faint. Unlike the dizziness, the nausea remained.

"Are you sure you're okay to do this today, Kate?" L.T. asked.

She gazed across the park, where Lanie stood, obviously flirting with the paramedic of the ambulance that was no longer needed.

Closing her eyes briefly and slowly opening them again to make sure that her vision was no longer clouded or distorted, she nodded. "Let's go."

By the time they reached the body, Lanie had moved to the back of the OCME van, getting her equipment ready to do her prelim.

Being preoccupied, she said, "I'll be right there." over her shoulder, barely acknowledging them.

The victim was male and clearly had been stabbed to death, so much so that there was barely an inch that hadn't been cut or pierced, sliced, or stabbed..

The acrid stench of blood and death assailed her nostrils and the sight of so much blood was more than she could take at the moment.

Her stomach rolled and pitched, the acrid taste of bile rose in her throat and before she could try to tamp it down and resist the urge to vomit, she did, all over the body, just as Lanie turned away from the back of the van.

"Captain Beckett, did you just hurl over my dead body?" Lanie asked, incredulous.

"Nope." Kate denied, not knowing why she even tried to deny it. The evidence was there.

"Really? Because I just saw vomit coming out of your mouth."

"Okay. Okay, I did. It just came out of nowhere and I couldn't help it."

"She's been like this for three days now. You should see the messes she's left in her office, all over the precinct, really." L.T. said.

"L.T., you're being insubordinate now. I thought we were friends."

"We are friends, that's why I'm so worried about you."

"It's nothing." Kate protested.

"Throwing up all over my crime scene is not nothing, Kate. You've never done this before." Lanie said, reaching into a white plastic box and handing her a pre moistened towelette.

"I know. I just don't…" and she doubled over, vomiting again. As she tried to right herself again, her vision blurred and the dizziness came back with a vengeance and her vision went to black. She was vaguely aware of Lanie and L.T's alarmed voices and then she was being caught up in someone's strong arms.

A repugnant odor assaulted Kate's nostrils and with arms that felt like lead to raise, she swatted at the vile odor. The odor came again and Kate heard someone calling her name, but the voice was far away. Lanie's voice, but why was she so far away? The odor came again, only this time it seemed stronger and lasted longer, causing her nostrils to burn. What the hell was that? She had to find out what that was.

Her eyes fluttered open to see Lanie's bleary, smiling face over her, holding a vial of smelling salts. Ammonia.

"Hey, Lanie." Kate said, choking and coughing from the scent of ammonia.

"Hey. Are you with me?"

"I think so. Where are we?"

"In the back of an ambulance. L.T. carried you in here."

"What happened?" Kate asked, dazed and confused.

"You mean before or after you puked all over my dead body twice?"

"I did that? I don't remember that."

"Well, you did. You scared the hell out of me, girl."

"I'm so sorry, Lanie. I didn't mean to.", Kate said, struggling to sit up.

"Take it easy, Kate. Don't try to sit up too fast. I know you didn't do it intentionally, Kate. When was the last time you ate anything?"

"Hmm. I think I nibbled on a bagel Ryan brought in this morning. I haven't been very hungry for a few days. I think I must have eaten something that didn't agree with me."

"Nope. Anything you would have eaten would have already passed through your system and L.T. says you've been sick for a few days now."

"Okay. Maybe I have a flu bug or something."

"Sorry. There's no sign of that, either. Your temperature and all your vital signs are normal. If I had to guess, I'd say that you're pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Kate asked, incredulous, her hand instinctively falling to rest protectively against her abdomen. Of course. The symptoms were all there. The run away emotions, the nausea, the dizziness. It all made perfect sense.

"Girlfriend, I did not stutter. You heard me."

"But…" Kate stammered. She and Rick had discussed having kids before their marriage. This was something they both wanted desparately, so much so, that she'd had the implant removed a month before they had eloped and she told Rick that she loved him and didn't want to wait. That was as true today as it was when she'd told him that. And now a real possibility.

Pregnant? With the emotional separation from Rick, her busy schedule, her preoccupation with Vikrim and all that involved, the thought hadn't even occured to her.

"I know. You haven't done anything because you've been separated. Think about it, Kate. You separated a couple of days after you became Captain and I'm assuming you and Castle celebrated…"

"Yeah, we did, but… Oh, you're right. We did." The memories of that came flooding back.. They had acted like honeymooners. They'd had 3 rounds, or maybe it had been 4 of intense, beautiful, passionate lovemaking. Hell, only eight months into marriage, they were still basically honeymooners.

"Look. I don't know what the problem is between you and Castle because you're great together and you love each other, but this separation needs to end. Having a baby together is a great thing, Kate." Lanie said, reaching in the pocket of her scrub top and pulling out a tin of Altoids and handed it to her,

"I know. But the timing is all wrong."

"Don't pull that on me, Kate. Right or wrong timing, he deserves to know. Whatever this is, that you're chasing has gotten you shot again and put you in danger. There's a lot more at stake here, to think about than your quest for justice, Kate. You may be carrying precious cargo that you need to protect."

Precious cargo. She liked that analogy, but panic seized her, causing her breathing to become ragged at the memory of being grazed by a bullet in her side just a couple of weeks ago.

Gasping for breath, she grasped Lanie's hand, panic and fear strangling her, making breathing next to impossible. "Lanie!", she choked out.

"I know. I'm right there with you. You need to get to the doctor, get checked out and have a sonogram done. It was just a graze, but, better to get it checked anyway."

"I will.", Kate said

"I know that you already know this, but you need to reexamine your priorities, Kate, think about what really matters. You need to go home, Kate. Go back to the man who loves you more than life itself and to the family who loves and misses you."

A movement outside the open ambulance doors caught Kate's attention. Rick was a few yards away, pacing under a tree, looking worried and anxious.

"As your next of kin, I called him. Now, all I told him was that you had gotten sick at a crime scene. Right now, my theory is just suspicion without any real confirmation by your OBGYN. If it is true, you need to be the one to tell him. It's time to go home, Kate."

Home. Home meant warmth, comfort, security, and love. Love that was everlasting and unconditional, etheral, all encompassing. She thought of Dorothy's words in The Wizard of Oz, as she clicked the ruby slippers together. "There's no place like home." No truer words had ever been spoken and home was where she wanted to be.

"Kate?" Lanie's voice, a voice of wisdom and insight and reason, pulled Kate from her musing.

"You're right, Lanie. I never should have left it in the first place." Kate said, popping two of the breath mints into her mouth.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go get that ruggedly, handsome husband of yours and go home."

The paramedics with the ambulance assisted Kate and Lanie from the back of the ambulance and Kate's eyes met Rick's gaze in the short span of distance that separated them.

They met in the middle, Kate launching herself into his arms, the most physical contact they'd had in almost a month.

He embraced her tightly, holding her close, kissing the crown of her head, peppering her face with kisses.

As she leaned back slightly to look up at him, she noticed his tear filled eyes. Oh, God! She had hurt him so bad. Would they be able to move past this? She had missed this closeness so much it hurt.

"Are you alright? I was so worried.". he asked, his voice choking and cracking with the anxiety of it all.

Trying to swallow past the burning lump of coal that had formed in her own throat, she nodded. "I will be if you'll let me come back home. If you'll have me back. I know that I have a lot of explaining to do and I can't undo the damage I've done. All I can do is try to earn your love and respect back. I love you so much, Rick and I've missed you like crazy."

'You never lost it, Kate. I won't lie to you and tell you that I'm not hurt and angry and confused, but I never once stopped loving and missing you. Of course you can come back, honey, but we have a lot we need to talk about."

"I know and I promise to never leave you again. I'm so sorry, Castle. So very sorry. I know that you're hurt and angry and you have every right to be, but I'm hoping you'll forgive me. I'll tell you everything once we're home."

"Okay. I'll go home and fix us some dinner and see you then."

"No, Castle. I want to come home, now."

"Now? But it's barely past ten in the morning."

"I don't care. I want to go home right now. Now, shut up and kiss me."

The kiss left them both breathless and weak, but it had been full of love, passion, hope and promise.

"So what happened here today, Kate? Are you sick?"

How was she supposed to answer that out in the middle of Battery Park with so many people milling about? And she didn't want to get his hopes up without actually having any proof.

If she was pregnant, she wanted them to find out together so they could revel in the news, share their joy together. Oh, God, please let it be and everything be okay.

"Later, Castle. When we get home, I promise to tell you everything. Right now, I just want to go home with you." she said, kissing him again.

When the kiss broke, he offered her his arm and she linked her arm through his and together they walked to the Crime Scene tape where L.T. stood trying to keep the looky lous away.

She smiled as they approached him and said, "Thank you, L.T. Hey, I'm not going back to the office today so, would you drive my car back to the precinct, please? And no hot rodding my car around, either." she replied with a wink and a smile.

She knew that she could trust L.T. implicitly and he would take care of her car, but couldn't resist the tease.

He gave her a smug smile and replied, "Yes, Captain. You know me so well. It will be my honor."

She wanted to give him a friendly hug, but for propriety and ethical reasons, she could not. Instead, she fished her keys from the pocket of her jacket and pressed them into his palm, mouthing a heart felt thank-you.

She stopped and tugged on Rick's hand, breaking their stride. "Wait, Rick. Before we go home, we need to make a stop at New York Presbyterian Hospital."

His brow furrowed and he began taking deep breaths as if trying to calm himself.

"Why? What happened, honey? What did Lanie say?"

"I fainted, babe. Lanie thinks I should go get checked out." She had hesitated before she answered. She wanted them to find out together and not get his hopes up before they had confirmation and they would have confirmation soon.

"You fainted? She didn't tell me that. We definitely need to take you to see a doctor so, of course we can go."

"Please, don't be mad at her. She just didn't want to alarm you unnecessarily."

"I'm not angry, just concerned."

"I know, babe and we'll find out soon."

As soon as they stepped onto the street, Rick hailed a cab and a few scant hours later, they stepped out of New York Presbyterian with a prescription for prenatal vitamins and a sonogram of their first child in hand.

Overcome with the love and joy he felt at this new chapter in their lives together this new adventure, he swept Kate up in his arms, lifting her feet off the ground, spinning her around. They were having a baby!

He had to steady Kate when he set her back on her feet. Steadying her, he wrapped his arm around her wait. "Are you okay with this?"

Cupping his jaw in the palm of her hand, she smiled up at him.

"Oh, babe. I am more than okay with this. I am so happy! You and our family is all that matters to me, all that has ever mattered to me. It's all that will ever matter. I know that my actions of the last couple of months have left you doubting that and at the time, I thought I was doing what was best for us, but now I see that I was so blind sighted. You need reassurance and I know that I have a lot of explaining to do, which I understand and I will explain, I promise. But I need you to know that I never wanted to leave. You did nothing wrong and I never once stopped loving you. I love you as much today as I did the day I met you. I can't wait to go home and show you just how much I do love you."

"So, you'll still come back home? I mean, you're not coming back home out of some misguided?..."

"Oh, Rick, no! I'm coming home because I love you and need you, not just because I'm pregnant. I'm coming home because that's where you are, and home with you is where I want to be. I never should have left."

He nodded. "Okay, then. Let's go home."

"Not so fast, buster! My appetite has been nil to none lately and right now, you're child is telling me that he's hungry."

"Oh, HE is, is he? Could be a girl, you know? So what is HE hungry for?"

She bit down on her bottom lip and then smiled up at him. "Remey's?"

His smile and answer was quick. "So, our child has excellent tastes in fast food. So, a cheeseburger with all the trimmings, french fries, and your usual strawberry shake?"

"Actually, no. My usual order is the same with the exception of a strawberry shake. Our child is wanting a dish of potato chip fudge ice cream. Think we can manage that?"

His laughter rang off the concrete and steel buildings around them. "Our child has excellent taste. I know we can manage that. So, Remey's and home?"

"Absolutely. Let's go."

A/N: Okay, That's it for this one. Back to work on "For The Love of Kate" Chapter 9. See you there,


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